Crazy Christians -

[Syaoran Li]

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some of these things listed I can understand, but why astrology and halloween?

Astrology is often tied to fortune-telling in the eyes of fundies, and there are Biblical prohibitions on fortune-telling and sorcery.

Halloween is a perennial target of the fundies going back to the beginnings of the Satanic Panic. They don't like anything seen as "spooky" and they also greatly exaggerate modern Halloween's connections to ancient Celtic pagan festivals like Samhain to try and establish a tie to Satanism and the occult. Plus Halloween is fun, and moral guardians of all stripes tend to hate that. The SJW's that eventually succeeded the fundies as the morality police also have a similar hateboner for Halloween, albeit with different justifications such as "problematic" costumes, "cultural appropriation", and the SJW hatred of anything remotely seen as "edgy"

 

[Large]

View attachment 983341
some of these things listed I can understand, but why astrology and halloween?

Listing fortune cookies is pretty exceptional too.

 

[FukuMuku]

Listing fortune cookies is pretty exceptional too.

most of the people that buy fortune cookies just want to see what the cookies taste like, none of that fortune telling thing.

 

[Spunt]

Astrology and Halloween are two of the more understandable ones IMO. Astrology claims that you can predict the future, which is a no-no in fundieland because only God knows the future. Halloween is the active celebration of witches, where kids go from door to door threatening to hand out curses, so it's easy to see why fundies won't like it.

The confusing ones to me are hypnotism and yoga. I mean yes, some hippies see some sort of spiritual meaning in yoga, but it's mostly just a low-impact workout routine, what's satanic about keeping your joints in shape? I guess you'd also have to be pretty far down the rabbit hole to be spooked by hypnosis, maybe they think it's demonic possession or something?

 

[FukuMuku]

The confusing ones to me are hypnotism and yoga. I mean yes, some hippies see some sort of spiritual meaning in yoga, but it's mostly just a low-impact workout routine, what's satanic about keeping your joints in shape?

I think the reason they think yoga is witchcraft is because some yoga poses look sexual and may turn people on so they think yoga is some kind of sex spell?

 

[Positron]

A lot of these stuff simply have no, had never have any, religious, mystical, or "spiritual" underpining, such as Hypnoticism and Acupuncture. This person is taking Isaiah's injunction against following "customs of nations from the east" too literally.

Feng Shui is a borderline case as it is sometimes associated with ancestor worship.

One thing that baffles me about Christian organizations, including my own church, is that they are very open to the Enneagram. Someday I must ask what is their justification.

 

[Billy "the Bot" Bobson]

Astrology and Halloween are two of the more understandable ones IMO. Astrology claims that you can predict the future, which is a no-no in fundieland because only God knows the future. Halloween is the active celebration of witches, where kids go from door to door threatening to hand out curses, so it's easy to see why fundies won't like it.

The confusing ones to me are hypnotism and yoga. I mean yes, some hippies see some sort of spiritual meaning in yoga, but it's mostly just a low-impact workout routine, what's satanic about keeping your joints in shape? I guess you'd also have to be pretty far down the rabbit hole to be spooked by hypnosis, maybe they think it's demonic possession or something?

Yoga is quite often associated with either new agers or tantric meditation. Hypnosis also has a long history of occult quackery. That's probably one of the least egregious things posted here. Pretty goofy presentation, but on point. Especially regarding Rosaries :^)

 

[Vorhtbame]

All right. I know some who read this thread only do so in order to scoff, but there's been a legitimate inquiry. I'll give it a whirl. You may not agree, you may even think it's all silly, but understand that there is a fundamental worldview that undergirds this. Keep an open mind. I'm adding spoilers so you have a handy-dandy index.

Spoiler: Central principle

Overall, the Christian belief is that a perfected reconciliation with God is paramount. Anything that impedes that is to be avoided--which is why you'll even see in the Bible a mention that, as an example, marriage is not the ideal situation; celibacy is, because marriage can prove a distraction, but fornication being an actual sin, it's better to marry than to sin. It's an intricate balance we maintain, and often a personal one, and since none of us has all the Truth, we warn one another of potential stumblingblocks in our way.

This is why you'll hear us carry on about the dangers of things that seem harmless to you. And to you, they may be harmless (for whatever reason); but everyone is different, and it's better to avoid something than to risk falling because of it.

Spoiler: Witchcraft

The use of the word "witchcraft" can be confusing, but it's a catchall term. The words so translated from Hebrew in Deuteronomy include the meanings of "divination", "whispering of spells", and "consorting with spirits". There are also proscriptions against "strange fire", meaning offerings that contradicted God's expressed expectations. In other words, you can't just slap a coat of whitewash on the sepulcher of foreign spiritual practices and expect God to call it acceptable.

(Which is why so many Protestants have issue with Catholic practices, incidentally. They have had, and still have, a bad habit of integrating pagan practices and calling them holy.)

Given the holistic nature of the practices of other religions, which involve ritual movements and mindsets as well as incantations, we tend to fold those into the simple, general word "witchcraft".

Now, as for what's on that board, it should be extremely obvious why some of them are spiritual poison. For those that aren't obvious...

Spoiler: Yoga

There are certain things that were originally sold to the Western nations as affirmatively religious practices, with the expectation that we were ready to embrace them. This was backed off of when met with resistance not just from Christians, but from secularists, who sued school districts to stop them being taught in the schools. Meditation and yoga are two of those; they've since been repackaged as "just healthy practices that are good for body and brain", but it should be obvious why yesterday's sales pitch is important when the same product's being sold today.

Spoiler: Feng shui

You ask about feng shui (yes, they misspelled it on the sign, but transliteration of Chinese is weird anyway so don't get mired in minutiae). Feng shui proposes that the positioning of objects can impact the flow of chi--which is in itself a religious concept.

Spoiler: Acupuncture

Acupuncture, similarly, arises from the notion that spiritual energies' flow in the body can impact one's spiritual condition and physical health--and improved not by changing one's thoughts and acts, but by inserting a needle into a prescribed place on the body. A modern practitioner may reject this concept, but its roots remain, and many still hold to it.

Spoiler: Hypnosis

Hypnosis goes to the question of altered states of consciousness, and it is a practice foreign to the Judeo-Christian tradition but not to pagan traditions. Even above that concern, hypnosis tends to place one into a state of hypersuggestibility; memories can be altered, habits can be created, perceptions can be permanently affected. Christianity places a high value on volition, discernment, and truth, and tampering with someone's mind can not only interfere with those, but open one to lingering influences and--in some folks' estimation--having your will and body hijacked.

Spoiler: Rosaries

Rosaries are used in devotions offered to a woman who is not God, as well as in a repetition of Jesus' recommended prayer pattern. Though Catholics offer justification for ritual devotions to people other than God, many Protestants (and us wacky fundies in particular) don't accept a meaningful distinction between that and ancestor worship/polytheism. It's strange fire, in our estimation.

Halloween probably seems obvious, though there are different reasons for different people. For some, it's the syncretism behind its origins. For others, it's the celebration or trivialization of things we ought to abhor and oppose. This is why many churches will host "fall festivals" that appear to be functionally the same, but without the spooky-scary-witchy stuff.

Reincarnation...er...Well, I should hope people aren't trying to practice that. (No, that's clearly not what the person meant, but we can have a little fun, can't we?)

 

[Syaoran Li]

I never understood why so many Protestant fundies hate on Halloween for having syncretic pagan roots, but they usually give Christmas a pass. Christmas is heavily derived from two pagan winter holidays, the Roman Saturnalia and the Germanic Yule, and that's one of the two main holy days in the Christian calendar. A similar case can be made for Easter having syncretic pagan roots, even if the militant atheists tend to over-exaggerate those claims.

At least with Halloween, it's a secular holiday for all intents and purposes. Seriously, you'd think the fundies would have a bigger issue with Christmas since it is explicitly a Christian holiday with pagan elements, but most fundies are fine with it and a lot of them were whining about the "War on Christmas" back in the 90's and 2000's, while waging their own little "War on Halloween" the entire time.

The only fundies who are consistent on the whole "pagan roots" across the board and treat Christmas with the same contempt as Halloween are usually fringe sects like Jehovah's Witnesses, Westboro Baptist Church, the Armstrong churches, and racist cults like Christian Identity and Black Hebrew Israelites.

Regardless of why they abhor it, I'd like to wish all the stuffy Protestant fundies out there a Happy Halloween!

 

[Ecto-1A]

Fundies hate Halloween because of witches and Samhain and the like.

 

[Syaoran Li]

Fundies hate Halloween because of witches and Samhain and the like.

Yet despite the existence of Saturnalia and Yule, they usually love Christmas.

Still, there must be something about Halloween that seems to trigger moral guardians in general. Both the fundies and the SJW's like to throw baby tantrums over it.

 

[MysticMisty]

I think the reason why Christmas gets a pass while Halloween doesn't has to do with the Christian roots of the holidays, not the pagan ones. Christmas is allowed (and second only to Easter as far as Christian holidays go) since it has the whole birth of Jesus attached to it. Doesn't matter if Jesus was really born in April, or even in July, the point is that the guy that all Christians base their religion on was born and it's celebrated on December 25th every year. And while for many people the holiday is very secular and includes little to no mention of the Jesus stuff, you better believe that in fundie homes "Santa Claus" is a four letter word and they allow little to no mention of the huge, secular side of the holiday that they feel is the so-called War on Christmas.

Halloween, on the other hand, has strictly Catholic roots. Halloween comes from All Hallows' Eve, which is another way of saying All Saints' Eve, the day before All Saints' Day (or All Hallows' Day), which as the name says is the day Catholics celebrate all of the saints. Saints are not included in Protestant Christianity so the idea of celebrating them is very strictly forbidden for fundies. So there's no way for them to reclaim the holiday from the secular stuff, nor do they want to because of it. So the shit about devils and witchcraft is their excuse to stay willfully ignorant of the Catholic roots of the holiday and put the fear of God in their kids about dressing up and going Trick or Treating.

I know some will disagree with me on this, but I think it plays a much bigger part compared to which pagan-sourced holiday is okay and which will send you straight to Hell.

 

[c-no]

Yet despite the existence of Saturnalia and Yule, they usually love Christmas.

Still, there must be something about Halloween that seems to trigger moral guardians in general. Both the fundies and the SJW's like to throw baby tantrums over it.

My guess: a chunk of them don't realize that Jesus technically wasn't born on those days since, iirc he was born more around March or so some theologians and biblical scholars say. As MysticMisty said, birth of Jesus gets attached to it. One can only wonder how many fundies would screech over Santa for diminishing the importance of Jesus or how the name is an anagram for Satan.

I think the reason why Christmas gets a pass while Halloween doesn't has to do with the Christian roots of the holidays, not the pagan ones. Christmas is allowed (and second only to Easter as far as Christian holidays go) since it has the whole birth of Jesus attached to it. Doesn't matter if Jesus was really born in April, or even in July, the point is that the guy that all Christians base their religion on was born and it's celebrated on December 25th every year. And while for many people the holiday is very secular and includes little to no mention of the Jesus stuff, you better believe that in fundie homes "Santa Claus" is a four letter word and they allow little to no mention of the huge, secular side of the holiday that they feel is the so-called War on Christmas.

Halloween, on the other hand, has strictly Catholic roots. Halloween comes from All Hallows' Eve, which is another way of saying All Saints' Eve, the day before All Saints' Day (or All Hallows' Day), which as the name says is the day Catholics celebrate all of the saints. Saints are not included in Protestant Christianity so the idea of celebrating them is very strictly forbidden for fundies. So there's no way for them to reclaim the holiday from the secular stuff, nor do they want to because of it. So the shit about devils and witchcraft is their excuse to stay willfully ignorant of the Catholic roots of the holiday and put the fear of God in their kids about dressing up and going Trick or Treating.

I know some will disagree with me on this, but I think it plays a much bigger part compared to which pagan-sourced holiday is okay and which will send you straight to Hell.

And even with the Catholic roots for Halloween, fundies will find a way to screech over it, whether it's a holiday from blasphemous pagans or the heretical Catholics.

 

[Jewelsmakerguy]

Astrology is often tied to fortune-telling in the eyes of fundies, and there are Biblical prohibitions on fortune-telling and sorcery.

Doesn't stop the fundi-est of Fundies from thinking that some star constellation will spell about the end times or some shit like that. So I assume it's an "It's okay if we do it, but not you guys." kind of thing going on.

 

[FukuMuku]

I never understood why so many Protestant fundies hate on Halloween for having syncretic pagan roots, but they usually give Christmas a pass. Christmas is heavily derived from two pagan winter holidays, the Roman Saturnalia and the Germanic Yule, and that's one of the two main holy days in the Christian calendar. A similar case can be made for Easter having syncretic pagan roots, even if the militant atheists tend to over-exaggerate those claims.

I actually saw christians that don't celebrate christmas because of the pagan roots thing and think all holidays dishonor god and make him pissed(except for thanksgiving).

oh, and talking about halloween, I found this video on youtube, its quite old.

Pagan invasion- Ep1 Halloween Trick or Treat

www.youtube.com

 

[Syaoran Li]

I actually saw christians that don't celebrate christmas because of the pagan roots thing and think all holidays dishonor god and make him pissed(except for thanksgiving).

That would be the Jehovah's Witnesses, who are pretty weird in their own right, but are very different from your old-school Evangelical Protestant fundies that I was referring to.

Most of the Christian fundamentalists who are against Christmas and Easter are usually "third-party" sects such as the Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventists, the various Armstrong churches, and so on. They also tend to have beliefs that while clearly Christian in nature, are also vastly different from the major sects.

Of course, "Major Party" Christianity would be Catholics/Eastern Orthodoxy and Evangelicals/Mainline Protestants.

(Yes, I know the Roman Catholic Church is wholly separate from the Eastern Orthodox churches, but I put them in as a "first party" due to their longer history and more organized nature compared to the Protestant denominations)

Most third-party sects are against Christmas and Easter as well as Halloween, with the noted exception of the Mormons. I don't know what the Mormon stance is on Halloween, but I know they're cool with Christmas and Easter.

Coincidentally, the LDS Church is probably the largest "third-party Christianity" sect in the world and the only one with any real cultural influence at all in the United States (mostly in Utah, Arizona, and other Western states)

 

[Chan the Wizard]

View attachment 983341
some of these things listed I can understand, but why astrology and halloween?

Doing reincarnation seems like a hard one and if you are doing it, it seems like you have a good system so why would you repent?

 

[Neet Tokusatsu Hero]

View attachment 983341
some of these things listed I can understand, but why astrology and halloween?

> Fortune Cookies

I want to believe this is satire...

 

[Smertest Wisard]

https://www.christianforums.com/threads/diaper-fetish.7804559/
https://archive.md/EmF17

 

[Large]

Doing reincarnation seems like a hard one and if you are doing it, it seems like you have a good system so why would you repent?

It's a crime in China.